Companies that employ more disabled people to be awarded

Federation of Uganda employers (FUE) will for the first time this year recognize and award the best company/organization employing many persons with disabilities(PWDs) in the country.

The 2016-2017 employers of the year awards organized by FUE will take place on the 24^th of next month.

The executive director of FUE, Rosemary N. Ssenabulya revealed this during a press conference held at the National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda (NUDIPU) offices in Bukoto on Wednesday.

Ssenabulya said there are various awards ranging from gold, silver and bronze which will be given out to different categories of employers, and for the first time, the category of best employer of PWDs has been included on the list.

"We have introduced a new category  this year, we shall be awarding companies that are doing well in employing many people with disability," she said

"By doing this, we want to attract and persuade other employers to employ more persons with disability," she added

The joint press conference was attended by representatives from NUDIPU, FUE, and Human Resource Managers Association of Uganda (HRMAU) and representative from Ministry of Labour, Gender and Social Development.

The executive director of NUDIPU, Edson Ngirabakunzi, said when it comes to employment, there is still limited space in work places for persons with disability.

He noted that there are many people with disability who are qualified in different fields, with the necessary skills and knowledge required for the job market, but because of disability, they are left out.

"We want equal opportunities as far as employment is concerned. We also appeal to government to enforce the existing laws that promote employment of persons with disabilities and ensure such laws are not discriminating persons with disability," he said.

In the joint statement, they all appealed to employers, civil society organizations and the private sector to provide internship and volunteer opportunities for graduates with disabilities at companies or organizations levels.